“Cost-effective, user friendly technologies providing pure water are required to counter the serious health hazards due to consumption of As and/or Fe-contaminated water.”

Map of the Brahmaputra River Basin in India Source: IndiaNetzone

This water assessment research study done by Chetia, Chatterjee, Banerjee, Natah, Singh, Srivastava, and Sarma collected water samples from various regions of the Golaghat district in Assam, India. These samples were analyzed for arsenic, iron, manganese, calcium, sodium, potassium, magnesium, pH, total hardness, and sulfate ions. Results reveal that heavy metals, like As, Fe, and Mn, are present in the water sources and some are present way past the allowed limit. The groundwater contamination reveals the utmost importance of providing safe water for the communities use. WEA, partnering with the Numi Tea Foundation, is undertaking an assessment to provide access to safe water and sanitation in Numi’s tea farming communities in Assam, India.

“The failure to ensure safe water supply and sanitation and the rapidity with which we degrade the environment through air and water pollutants greatly threatens human health and contributes to a high death toll across all ages. The poorest victims, however, are the children.”

In the Philippines, 25 million people do not have access to basic sanitation services and another 13 million lack access to clean water. The costs associated with these disadvantages are huge: disease is rampant, death not uncommon and over $280 million USD in medical expenses and lost income. Attempts are being made by the government to reduce these numbers, following the Millennium Development Goal, but it appears unlikely to be met by 2015. Women and children are the primary fetchers of water, resulting in their continued inability to bring themselves or their families out of poverty if they must constantly be searching for clean water.
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